Chapter 85

The monster's forward rush was extremely powerful. Although the four people managed to knock it off the cliff, they were also thrown to the ground by the counterforce.

Geng Yanli took a few deep breaths and then asked, "Is... is it dead?"

Gong Lei, hearing her question, hurriedly crawled to the edge of the cliff and peered down. His view was blocked by the mist, and he could see nothing, so he could only guess, "Falling from such a height, it must be dead."

At that moment, the cliff suddenly shook violently, followed by a loud noise, clearly indicating that the monster had just landed at the bottom of the valley.

Hearing the sound of the monster hitting the ground, everyone's hearts eased. From the sound, it was clear that it had landed on solid ground. Falling from such a height, even steel would be damaged, let alone a monster. Although its skin was hard, its insides were still made of flesh and blood.

Geng Yanli still felt a bit uneasy and glanced at Xu Mo, then asked, "There are no other monsters here, right?"

Xu Mo nodded.

"Xu!" Han Ying suddenly called out to Xu Mo. He turned his face, and saw her nodding at him seriously, saying, "Thank you!"

Xu Mo smiled faintly, understanding why she was thanking him. According to the others, when the monster attacked, they had planned to run away, but he had insisted on knocking it off the cliff.

If he had thought like the others and chosen to run away, even if they could escape the monster's pursuit, the fundamental problem would not be solved. Han Ying would still be in danger when she went to gather herbs in the cave. Now that the monster had fallen to its death, she would be truly safe when gathering herbs.

Geng Yanli glanced at Han Ying and suggested, "Sister Ying, let's go to the cave and gather the night-blooming grass as soon as we get back to the camp. If we wait too long, something might change."

Han Ying nodded, "Alright."

They returned the same way, arrived at the camp, and equipped themselves with climbing tools. Xu Mo led the way to the cave. With the monster dead, Gong Lei and Geng Yanli were no longer afraid and followed along.

Inside the cave, they passed through several forks and entered the large hall. Gong Lei and Geng Yanli, seeing the night-blooming grass for the first time, couldn't help but marvel.

Han Ying looked up and said, as if suddenly realizing something, "The night-blooming grass grows in the rock crevices. I once tried to grow it myself but always failed, and I never knew why. Now I understand." She paused and continued, "I'll look around to see where I can climb up..."

"Ah..." At this moment, Geng Yanli suddenly let out a scream, interrupting Han Ying. She looked terrified, screaming and jumping back, pointing to a corner of the stone hall, her voice trembling, "There... there's a skeleton here!"

Everyone looked in the direction she pointed and saw a skeleton in the corner. Although it was not complete, from the scattered skull, arm bones, leg bones, and torn clothing fragments, they could still identify it as a human skeleton.

Xu Mo took one look and immediately guessed: It's the remains of the man surnamed Wei. The monster ate his flesh and threw the bones here.

Han Ying shone her flashlight and seemed to notice something, softly exclaiming, "Hmm." She approached, kicked away the torn clothing fragments, and examined them closely, saying, "It's someone from Guiming Island. How did they die here?"

Xu Mo was startled, "You know this person?"

Han Ying smiled, "I recognize the uniform. My ex-husband also worked for this... I don't know if it counts as a company, but he worked on this island."

Xu Mo said, "Oh," and muttered to himself, "Guiming Island, Guiming Island..." It was the first time he had heard of this island. After thinking for a moment, he asked Han Ying, "Do you know where this island is?"

Han Ying replied, "It's said to be in the Pacific Ocean. The existence of this island is as mysterious as the Bermuda Triangle, no... even more mysterious. Its surroundings are filled with chaotic magnetic fields, making it impossible for ordinary people to find it. Even satellite maps don't show its existence."

"Ah!" Xu Mo's expression changed, and after a moment of thought, he asked, "What does this small island do? Do you know?"

Han Ying said, "Guiming Island is very secretive and has strict confidentiality policies. I only know a little from what my ex-husband told me. It's said that in recent years, they have been conducting research on genetic mutations, usually using animals for experiments, and sometimes even humans."

"Using animals for experiments?" Xu Mo repeated softly, thinking: The mutated monster must have come from this. He suddenly remembered the spiritual black eagle he saw in the North Mountain and the Qingqiu Jun that Luo Shi mentioned. He had never seen the Qingqiu Jun and didn't know if it was real or just a hallucination of Luo Shi. But the spiritual nature of the black eagle was clear. He wondered: Could these animals also be related to Guiming Island?

While he was lost in thought, Geng Yanli suddenly reminded him, interrupting his thoughts. She said to Han Ying, "Sister Ying, let's quickly gather the night-blooming grass and leave this place. Being with a skeleton makes me feel uncomfortable."

"Alright," Han Ying agreed. Seeing that Xu Mo was no longer asking questions, she and the others used the climbing tools to climb to the top of the hall and gather the night-blooming grass. They put the gathered grass into a bag they were carrying.

Xu Mo had never tasted the night-blooming grass before. Hearing that it was needed in the medicine prescribed by the famous doctor Li Heling for Han Ying's mother, he became curious. He took a stem, brought it to his nose, and sniffed it. Finding no harm, he plucked a leaf and was about to taste it.

But just as he brought it to his mouth, he hesitated and finally pinched a small piece from the leaf, put it in his mouth, and chewed it carefully. He found it bitter with a hint of sweetness. In terms of medicinal properties, it was similar to ordinary plants, with more plant characteristics than medicinal effects. However, the specific effects would need to be felt after swallowing it.

He swallowed the chewed leaf and initially felt nothing. But after a while, the medicine took effect, and he felt drowsy.

He was shocked: The night-blooming grass has a hypnotic effect! And it's strong; I only ate a small piece and already feel sleepy.

He shook his head to dispel the drowsiness. Fortunately, he had eaten only a little and quickly regained his senses. He suddenly remembered Han Ying's mother's condition and felt something was wrong. He walked up to her, pulled her aside, and asked in a low voice, "You said your mother was in a car accident, and her injuries healed, but she has been in a coma ever since?"

Han Ying, not knowing why he was asking, still answered, "Yes, for several years."

Xu Mo continued, "The medicine to wake her up, prescribed by the famous doctor Li Heling?"

Han Ying looked at him in confusion, not understanding, "Yes, didn't I tell you? Why are you asking again?"

Xu Mo remembered what the man surnamed Wei and the man surnamed Chu had said about the night-blooming grass being a specialty of Guiming Island. Since Han Ying's ex-husband was also from Guiming Island, he felt even more certain and asked, "How did you find this famous doctor Li Heling?"

"My ex-husband took me to him. What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

Xu Mo's heart skipped a beat, becoming even more convinced of his suspicions, "So, at that time, you and your ex-husband were still married?"

"Yes!" Han Ying, hearing this question, blushed and looked at Xu Mo strangely, asking, "What... what's wrong with you? Why are you asking these questions?"

Xu Mo sighed, wanting to share his suspicions but decided not to. Instead, he suggested, "I think... you should not use the night-blooming grass for your mother anymore. Even the medicine prescribed by Li Heling, you should not use it."

"Why?" Han Ying took a night-blooming grass from her bag and examined it, seeing nothing unusual, and asked, "Is there a problem with the night-blooming grass? I can't see anything wrong with it."

Xu Mo firmly said, "It's not that the night-blooming grass is problematic, but the night-blooming grass itself has a problem." He paused and explained, "The night-blooming grass has a hypnotic effect, making people drowsy after consumption."

Han Ying was shocked, her face changing, "You... you mean my mother has been in a coma because of the medicine?"

"Most likely," Xu Mo nodded and added, "The night-blooming grass is a specialty of Guiming Island. Don't you understand?"

Han Ying's face changed dramatically, "You mean my mother's condition... was caused by my ex-husband... my ex-husband..." She couldn't finish the sentence.

Xu Mo nodded solemnly.

Even with Han Ying's composure, she couldn't help but mutter, "How could this be? How could this be?"

This was truly unbelievable. She wanted to disbelieve it, but remembering that the night-blooming grass was found by her ex-husband after their divorce, and that she had searched for it for years without success, only to find it here, which was related to Guiming Island, made her doubt.

"If it was my ex-husband, why... why would he do this? What benefit would he gain from my mother being in a coma?" Han Ying spoke softly, her mind wandering, as if asking Xu Mo or talking to herself.

Xu Mo sighed, thinking: Not only is the medicine problematic, but your mother's car accident might also have been caused by your ex-husband. Guiming Island is very secretive. Perhaps your mother discovered something your ex-husband was doing, and he wanted to silence her. When he failed to kill her, he used the medicine to keep her in a coma.

He thought this but didn't say it, his eyes filled with sympathy as he looked at Han Ying.